Making a Hot Wire Cutter for Shaping Foam

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In this video I'm building myself a hot wire cutter so I can cut larger and more intricate shapes into the foam I use in my projects.

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IG: @chrisfromgoodroads

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A little basic ohms law - 22g nichrome 80 wire is virtually 1ohm per foot, so let's say you're making a 3' wire cutter that's 3ohms, with a 12VDC power supply ohms law will give you the current, I=V/R (I current, V volts, R resistance) so - your power supply has to AT LEAST equal I amps. I amps= 12volts/3 so I = 4amps, so you'll need at least a 4amp power supply.

If you want a shorter or longer cutter you can adjust it by either changing the supply voltage which pushes more current through the wire, or the gauge of nichrome wire which changes the resistance per foot of wire. The calculation remains the same I=V/R, and seeing as heat output is generally given in terms of power in watts, P=V*I so in this example Pwatts = 12volts * 4amps which gives you 36watt heater.

You can look up the temperature characteristics of nichrome wire on the www but 4amps thru 22g will give you about 700degF, like this guy said don't mess around with other kinds of wire because you won't know what you're dealing with - for example if you tried to make one using 22g copper wire (0.015 ish ohms per foot) you would need roughly a 12V 250amp power supply and god knows what heat you would get from it, and something (perhaps you) will go bang. Nichrome wire is made exactly for this kind of purpose and is a known entity, so don't try making one out of copper, or guitar strings, or a shoelace.

Be careful kids, don't burn yourself, and try not to burn your house down either.

lawrencejones

Tip: You can salvage nichrome wire from the heating element in an old hair dryer or heat gun.

texomatinker

After watching your video you've given me a fantastic idea ! ! ! At about time 6:00 you demonstrated "Detailed Cuts" . This is where the idea hit me . If you wanted to make detailed shapes in polystyrene to use as insulation for shipping container homes this would be fantastic ! ! ! Once the shape is cut out with your hot wire cutter it could be placed directly onto the outside or inside walls of a shipping container . This would then fill in that corrugated shape that all shipping containers have in their walls and insulate very well . Thanks for the inspiration .

johnh

The possibilities for modification and upgrading with additional accessories are endless thanks to the simple and standard design!

maxpolaris

Look up "nichrome wire calculator" and there is a formula for choosing the Amps output on a power supply based on wire gauge, length, and voltage

pinnacleroofing

Great, but as a beginner I'd need more detail on how to wire up the switch and where the wires from the power supply go!

Digmen

you can prestretch the nichrome, if you use a drill and those eye hooks you basically "unwind" the spring out of the metal and it work hardens. You can also double and triple up the strands to lower your resistance (let's you run lower amperage to a higher temp) also allows much more rigid structure to the cutting wire allowing you to create preshaped profiles.

verigone

For a crude design- this was one of the best ive seen! Thanks for the great Vid, Im going to try this 👍😉🇨🇦

David-swon

In stead of u-sing a bend melted in to the PVC we have been using a spring to attach one side of the wire to the Eye-bolty

PrincetonTV

You could make a mounting rig to attach it to a table and work it like a band-saw. That would make your cuts more precise because you could use both hands to move the piece of foam, you could even make a sled similar to the ones made for table-saws for more precise and reliable cuts.

inktrooper.

Model airplane enthusiasts have been doing this for decades . Check out how foam wings are cut . A great addition would be a variable temp control for your cutter so you could use different length wires .It's a game changer

davidmcd

It is better to connect the power wire directly to the heating wire. Using the bolt to conduct the electricity will add resistance and cause the bolt to heat, possibly melting the PVC pipe.

grepora

Thank you for this. I will make one one these fastened to a vertical wood panel. I need to cut a lot of 10cm in half by its thickness. By far the best way to do it. And no snow as with a saw or knife

joekaplowitz

A good idea would be to get a piece of MDF plywood and make a a simple platform. MDF is preferred because it is very smooth and level. From there you would drill a hole in the center and just extend the arms of the cutter giving you more clearance for larger pieces of foam. Ive been messing around with the idea to make Halloween Foam Tombstones

evilphantom